Someone gives you 50,000 dollars for a project that explicitly can’t be a business. What’s the project you work on and why?
I want to host dinner centered around intimacy and cultural curation in different cities. The project would involve hosting a series of 4-course meals for small groups, with each event celebrating the local cuisine and culture of its location. I also want to handcraft unique ceramic dishes for each course, adding my personal touch to the experience. Traveling to various cities would also allow me to explore regional ingredients, cooking techniques, and food traditions. I would document this culinary journey on a website featuring photos, recipes, and behind-the-scenes content from each dinner.
At its core, this project stems from my love for people and my belief that cooking is a profound way to show care and strengthen human connection. In an age where superficial aspects of life often dominate, I cherish the authentic stories and bonds that can form when we gather around a shared meal.
What’s something you accomplished or created in the last year that you’re proud of?
In the last year, I learned the quiet courage of loving oneself, albeit through hosting dinners, attuning to my inner child, and letting go. It was a hard-fought lesson, wrested from countless small surrenders to the ache and beauty that comprise this mortal coil.
There were days mired in melancholy when I yearned to be someone, anyone else. To slip out of my own skin and leave behind the burdens I carried. But slowly, tentatively, I began to make peace with the face in the mirror - both foreign and familiar, an ally and adversary. I came to understand that even in the midst of pain, pinpricks of light could be found if one only remembered to look.
It takes a peculiar kind of bravery to embrace the fullness of who you are, scars and all. To grant yourself grace on the days when you have nothing to give. I am still learning the art of it - how to meet my own gaze without flinching, how to be gentle with the wounded parts of my soul.
But I am proud of how far I have come. Of the hard-won compassion I now extend to myself in moments of frailty and despair. There is a hushed valor in choosing to love the unlovely parts of your own being. In that quietude between the shadows and the light, I am beginning to discover the makings of peace.
Some days, that is enough. Some days, it is everything.
Elaine Scarry: “Beauty comes out to greet us and prepares us for the other undertakings, for finding out about truth and committing ourselves to justice.” Agree or disagree?
Elaine Scarry’s defence of beauty against moral condemnation offers a compelling perspective on its role in our pursuit of higher truths and values. She argues that beauty’s immediate allure and clarity serve as an entry point to deeper understanding and ethical contemplation.
The “clear discernibility” of beauty, according to Scarry, introduces us to states of certainty and conviction while simultaneously highlighting our capacity for error. This paradox encourages a nuanced approach to perception and judgment. Beauty’s power to induce “radical decentering” frees our minds from self-preoccupation, allowing us to better perceive the complexities of the world and the subtleties of truth. Scarry metaphorically describes beautiful things as “ladders reaching toward the beauty of the world,” suggesting that aesthetic experiences can elevate our consciousness and attune us to broader concepts of goodness and justice.
Kant, in his Critique of Judgment, proposed that beauty can be seen as a symbol of the good. However, he cautioned that such an analogy should be approached with an awareness of the aspects in which beauty and goodness differ, as well as the aspects in which they reveal similarities. Ultimately, beauty serves as a guide, albeit one shaped by cultural biases and power structures. While it can point us in fruitful directions and attune us to what is worthwhile, to truly arrive at truth, we must critically examine our notions of beauty and remain open to challenging our tastes.
What qualities or skills best characterize the way you discover and solve problems?
My approach to discovering and solving problems is characterized by an intense curiosity and a willingness to dive deep into complex issues. I often cultivate a digital garden, a space where I voraciously explore tangentially related concepts and perspectives. While technology grants me access to a wealth of information and resources, it also exposes me to a world of uncertainty and ambiguity.
Embracing the Socratic paradox, I remain acutely aware of the limitations of my knowledge. This epistemic humility is not just a philosophical stance but a practical necessity for solving complex problems. It requires an openness to being wrong and a willingness to engage in trial-and-error experimentation.
Underpinning this approach is a fundamental belief in agency and self-efficacy. Kant’s exhortation “Sapere aude” (dare to know) from his essay “Answering the Question: What is Enlightenment” resonates deeply with me. It encourages a program of intellectual self-liberation through reason, a path I strive to follow. I believe that with sufficient determination, ingenuity, and grit, we can achieve remarkable things. In this context, neuroticism, often viewed as a liability, becomes a gift when transmuted into dogged persistence. Combined with the humility to recognize the scope of ignorance, it propels a restless journey of discovery, chasing the light of knowledge into the unknown. Through this alchemical process, vices are transformed into virtues in the relentless pursuit of truth.
Who (between 18 and 23) would you be the most excited to find out was in your Fellowship class? Why? *
I would be thrilled to meet individuals who are bridging the understanding gap between foundational models and humans through innovative interfaces and interactions. Language models perceive the world differently than we do, and developing rich interfaces to connect these distinct worldviews could lead to profound insights and a deeper understanding of our world. While techniques like prompting and dimensionality reduction offer glimpses into the possibilities, current interactions remain static. We have yet to experience a true extension of self through these models, as I firmly believe they are magical being. Solving this understanding gap would enhance our journey to refine our taste and attune to what is truly meaningful.